Three Favorites plus one!

A new recurring series here and maybe a future slot on the podcast.

I'll pick three favorite players of mine from the pre-1985 era who are in the Hall of Fame from a team and then add one player who isn't in the Hall that I think should be.

Of course, We'll start with the Browns!

No better place to start than with arguably the greatest player ever- Jim Brown.
A fullback with the speed of the modern halfback, Brown was two decades ahead of his time.

The speed to run away from defenders yet with the phenomenal strength to run over you, the player that most resembles the modern player in old films- Jim Brown is my favorite Brown in the hall...

My second favorite goes to coach and founder of the team- Paul Brown.
Yes, Brown gets an edge for creating the team, winning all of its championships except one (which was really his team that was built in 1964), but also for all the innovations that he brought to the game, such as calling the plays as a coach, helmet radios, the first facemask, etc,
For more on the innovation of Paul Brown, check out his episode of "A Football Life" on the NFL Network.
Plus, he earned tons of credit for being the first person to sniff out the skunk that was Art Modell...

The final one goes to deep threat Paul Warfield, who was the best receiver of the Browns, became the best passing threat on the Dolphins champions of the '70s, had a short stint in the WFL, and then returned home for a final two-season run with the Browns.
Warfield's numbers are skewered a bit by the time that he played in and the run-first teams he played on (the Browns with Jim Brown first and then Leroy Kelly and then the Dolphins of Larry Csonka and Jim Kiick), but his speed and flair ranked him as the deep threat of his time.
Warfield caught just 29 passes in 1973, but 11 went for scores.
Had Warfield played a little later, his reception numbers would have been much higher...

My pick for deserving Brown not in the Hall goes to Hanford Dixon.
Dixon was the best cover corner of his time and made a terrific pairing with Frank Minnifield as the best corner tandem of the 80's.
Dixon played his entire career with the Browns and unlike many "cover" corners (Coughs Deion Sanders) knew how to make a tackle.
Hanford Dixon was superior to quite a few corners in the HOF right now and deserves entry.

Honorable mention goes to Jerry Sherk, who I think was of that level before the staph infection that basically ended his career.
Sherk could have been that deserving.

I hope you enjoyed this feature and I may reach out to others to do their teams-Ryan with Packers,Battlin' Bob Steelers,Big Don Bills etc....